about

Mr.Graceless’ album “The Tree Ever Green” is the account of their youth’s mood, a part of this era’s memory of the voice of youth. This record is not merely their music it is their farewell to years past. In the midst of this golden time’s echo we hear those yet unchanged sounds hovering by our ears, the first thumping of a trembling heartbeat, the first tightening grasp of a fist, their hearty laughter on afternoons filled with sunlight continuously pours in. Nowadays those easily destroyed colors have all been scattered in different directions and the declaration made after yesterday’s fighting has not yet entered into the detached multitudes. Young girls’ faces have become laden with dust and every memory of the age of youth is now locked. Not a word can push you out the door. These three seem like withdrawn, inelegant gentleman in the face of everyone while attempting to record everlasting time using simple sounds. The sweetness and vexation of maturing, the tumult and hot blood of adolescence, these things do not lose the pounding power of melody to leave an aftertaste of those flying ashes and smoldering smoke, winking, and can perhaps take you to years past.

The entire album presents Mr.Graceless’ habit of persistently making independent rock and roll and their partiality for graceful melody, 11 songs accompanying the band as they mature included one by one on the album—they have recorded all the verdant days of these “gentlemen.” There is no showing off to please the crowd, no onerous and longwinded philosophizing. Jiulong’s cool and compact drumbeat, Yuanshuai’s gentle and contemplative bassline combined with the sometimes crazy sometimes reserved sound of Qiushuang’s guitar creates a sweet-sounding result. Not to forget the wonderful two and three voice harmonies, another of their specialties. The longing for oneself in “My Channel”, the expression of “Lovely Face”, the banter in “Mr. Li”, the self-humor in “License to Capture”, the sunshine of “Warm Horizon”, the intoxication of “Zhuiluo”, the excitement of “Throw that Block”, all the sentiments of the old days are left on this album hinting at the shutting of youth’s coffin lid and a final wave farewell.

Furthermore, the sound manager of the Beijing Olympic opening ceremonies and Zhang Yimou’s movie soundtracks, Chen Yuli, devoted his talents to cutting and shaping of these recordings and postproduction. This is the promise of this album’s quality. At the same time he acted as the producer for Gar concerning the perfection of of their acoustics, which he has done for Mr.Graceless to achieve the warm, pleasant sound of the music’s special qualities and the maximal power of the album’s listening quality.

In this deathly boring world there is always music that can rescue you, make you as before, bring you out of the vacuum to look for warmth, birth strength from your despair, and help you find a companion in solitude. Youth will no doubt die yet the evergreen will never fade.